8 Top Tips When Working From Home

Working from home has rapidly become the new norm. 

Yes, some progressive teams are well versed in the pros and cons of remote working, but for many, this unexpected shift to a remote workforce presents a leap into unchartered territory.

As leaders, we need to step up the support, active leadership and direction provided to our remote teams at this time.

Throughout my career, I've experimented with life as a telecommuter; managing travel companies with satellite teams across Asia, and in seeking out creative inspiration for our events company in Bali during the Australian winters. 

During those years I learned, failed, tested and iterated to optimise the most effective ways to work and run a business remotely.

It is more critical than ever in these unique times that we help our employees stay connected, productive and supported.

And with this in mind, my team and I crafted my  “8 Top Tips When Working From Home”. Intended to help you and your remote teams bring their A-game every day.

1) Morning Routine

Whether you’re a devoted member of the 5am club or a guilty as charged serial snoozer, a solid morning routine is an essential way to line up your day for success. For those self-confessed late risers don’t give up on me yet - now you’re WFH and that crushing commute is no longer in play, nudge your wakeup alarm back by 30-mins, but when it sounds - don’t snooze, get up!

Committing to a healthy morning routine is a great way to reset from the previous day, establish your intentions for the day ahead and put you in a positive mind frame. 

When setting your routine be sure to include the things that personally energise and enliven you. Ideas for a morning routine that are easy to implement could include exercise, journaling, meditating, podcasting or even working on those “big hairy audacious goals” (BHAGs) that never seem to reach the top of the list. 

Remember there are no hard and fast rules here. It’s important to do what works for you. And of course sticking to it is the key. It’s widely accepted that when followed, a morning routine (irrelevant of the start time) drives discipline. Discipline builds habits. And positive habits help shape the path to performance.

So, what’s my morning routine?

1. Early alarm clock - 5.30am
2. Exercise - Light jog or circuit
3. Podcast - faves are On Purpose with Jay Shetty and Unstoppable with Kerwin Rae
4. Meditate - Headspace
5. Cold shower - 30 seconds. Try it!
6. Success time - Focus on tasks that make BIG impact (as opposed to survival tasks)

Curious about the morning routines of other successful entrepreneurs? Check them out here.

Dan’s Top Tip: Place your alarm out of reach from your bed, this way you physically have to rise and shine to turn it off - cruel but effective!

2) Daily Exercise

I think by now we’re all sold on the wide-reaching benefits of physical activity. And, according to science, morning workouts have the edge for burning stored fat, making it ideal for weight loss. 

So if exercise has been overlooked in your morning routine, then it’s time to re-introduce it. With so many free workout apps available for download these days that enable you to workout wherever you are - apartment, back yard or lawn, it’s never been easier to stay fit and healthy. You don’t need to invest in gym equipment or weights, a towel can substitute a yoga mat and you can choose between a wide range of workout packages and coaches that best suit you. 

I recommend an accountability partner. Or even a group to support you and you can setup a simple google sheet to track the results. 

When myself and a group of mates first committed to our morning routines for the entire month of September, one of our non-negotiable rules was to commit to at least 10-minutes of exercise every day. The fitness activity could be anything; a jog, press-ups, high energy circuit or even just skipping. Any form of physical activity that drums up a sweat and increases heart rate. 

Again the point here was just to do it in a disciplined way.

Every day.

Without fail.

And the impact, even after a few days, in our overall energy levels and mindset was staggering.

3) Routine Huddles

Every company, culture and team dynamic is unique.

We all communicate and collaborate in different ways. But whether you are accustomed to daily, weekly or monthly team and management check-ins and reporting cycles, now is a time to think differently.

Meeting fundamentals still transcend across from the physical to the virtual; continue to ensure meetings are facilitated, agenda led, and outcome-driven to be efficient with your number one commodity - time. 

However, if full-time remote working is a new and foreign environment for your employees then do not underestimate the impact of a quick informal dial-in. 

1. How was everyone’s weekend? 
2. How are you doing today? 
3. Does anyone need my help (now or offline)?

Step-up the non-functional, human conversations to compensate for the lack of in-person interaction. Lead by being open in your communication and active in your listen. Also encourage staff to step confidently into this new world with compassion, honesty and integrity. Have your team watch out for and check-in on one another and form accountability buddies.

4) Focus On The ONE Thing

In uncertain, tumultuous times, work (and life) can seem complicated, confusing and confronting. This can lead to procrastination, lack of drive, and lower productivity.

By narrowing the focus and simplifying the approach  you can reduce the noise, eliminate distractions, and maintain positive progress with your team against the backdrop of challenging times. 

The ONE Thing method by Gary Keller outlines the surprisingly simple logic behind producing extraordinary results by focusing on one task. Identifying the one most important task in any given project, at any one time is a powerful way to maintain collective team momentum toward achieving the end goal.  Keller’s step by step process offers insightful and practical examples that I can vouch have personally been a game-changer for myself and my teams. I highly recommend! 

And remember, there can only ever be one most important thing. 

5) Take Incremental Breaks

The human brain, despite its extraordinary processing power, is not designed to focus on tasks for extended periods of time - period. In sitting at your home office desk for hours on end without a break you’ll soon discover that productivity and creativity begins to suffer.

Confusion sets in between being busy with being effective. And more importantly, personal wellbeing and mental health starts to take a hit. Then it’s a swift downward slide from there to a state of anxiety and psychological distress.

Now is the time to put a structure in place to pro-actively combat time slippage. Under the Promodoro method it is recommended you take a 5 min short break every 25-minutes to help reset and maximise productivity.  Then return to your desk fresh and re-aligned. Stretch the legs, practice your barista skills (almond piccolo please), check-in on Alfie cavoodle, or read a quick story to your little ankle biters. Whatever works for you, but be sure to leave your desk space. 

Now habits are not formed overnight. So set an alarm, start the timer or add to Google calendar.

Helpful tools: Inbox Pause - does what is says on the tin. Tomighty - an app to set 25-minute intervals.

6) Gamify The Work

Bogged down with mundane tasks? Repetitive tasks. Incomplete tasks.

Sounds all too familiar?

Introducing game-play (“gamification”) is a great technique to help break down long-term projects or tedious tasks into more exciting and engaging segments to help with focus and productivity. 

As Neil Patel defines it: "Gamification works by encouraging people to engage in desired behaviors, by showing a path to mastery, and by taking advantage of our human psychological predisposition to engage in gaming".

As we find ourselves working in a state of self-isolation, now is a great time to explore new ways to stay motivated and productive through creative forms of game-play. But it’s important to ensure that the gamified solution tackles both sides of the relationship - desired outcome and reward.

61% of CEOs, CFOs and senior executives take daily game breaks at work

80% of learners would be more productive if their work was more game-like

89% say that a point system would increase their engagement

Outcomes (or success criteria) will vary dependent upon the context. Whether the metrics be based upon call volume, web copy, new recruitment or completing a training module; the key here is to actively track progress, if not in real-time certainly on a daily basis.

Leaderboards and progress bars are also really powerful ways to add fun and engagement and a sense of competitive achievement.

The balance to the equation is to incentive performance with a reward. The main principle here is carrot and stick. Awards could entail a badge of honour, a certificate for a learning achievement, or a virtual team building event to build a further sense of community.

7) Ask For Help

The landscape around mental health is at last beginning to shift in a positive way. Men and women are being celebrated for opening up from a place of vulnerability; sharing personal difficulties they oftentimes face across the various dimensions of their lives.

Asking for help should be acknowledged as affirmative action and be actively supported within a healthy organisational culture. In the current climate now is the time to over-index on self-care and offering up support to those around us. 

Many of us are dealing with newfound pressures and uncertainties in adapting to the new normal. Take courage in speaking up and asking for help, and keep a look out for friends or colleagues who you believe may be hurting too. Sometimes, being brave enough to lead in sharing your feelings can trigger the courage in others and foster tighter relationships.

It’s also more important than ever to ritualise formal and informal meetings to facilitate remote team catch-ups and one-on-ones. Valuable contact time with other human beings is essential to help adjust and normalise to the current situation and prepare for the challenges we face into the future.

If your organisation doesn't already have an internal VC solution there’s a wealth of free virtual meeting platforms to choose from to facilitate conversation. If not, here's a novel idea - jump on the phone. Have a real conversation with someone. After-all we’re in self isolation (I prefer the term physical). Not social isolation.

8) Team Time

How do you build culture and keep employees socially connected when working remotely?

Sitting at home all day takes a toll. Then add to this the worry and angst of COVID-19. Employees begin to experience a lack of motivation that comes with not being able to leave the house. Natural social interaction is diminished.

This dims the fire of even those with the brightest inner flame.

Humans after-all are social animals. We need interaction with other people.

Without a watercooler to swap jokes and stories around, or fun team social events to let your hair down, remote workers can get lonely, and organisational culture can suffer.

A great way to overcome this achieve this is through virtual team building events.

Remote team building activities are a simple yet effective way for you to build relationships, boost morale and maintain culture within your remote teams.

It's also a great way to get to know employees in other parts of the organisation and create a sense of togetherness.

I hope these tips are useful to you!

I'd love to hear if you have any other #wfh top tips or tricks that work for you.

And if you'd like help with your virtual team building activities be sure to reach out!

Cheers, Dan Udall

#workingfromhome #wfh #toptips #remoteworkers #distributedteams #culture #support #productivity #together #virtualteambuilding #remoteteambuilding